Latest / Crime Stories with Nancy Grace / Vegas Cheer Competition Horror: Mother Kills Daughter, Then Herself Inside Las Vegas Hotel Room | Crime Alert 6AM 02.18.26

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Vegas Cheer Competition Horror: Mother Kills Daughter, Then Herself Inside Las Vegas Hotel Room | Crime Alert 6AM 02.18.26 · Crime Stories with Nancy Grace

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  Speaker 1: Crime Alert hourly update, breaking crime news Now. I'm Drew Nelson.
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: In Nevada, police say a Utah mother shot her young
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  Speaker 1: daughter inside a Las Vegas hotel room before killing herself
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  Speaker 1: during a trip for a cheer competition. Investigators identified the
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  Speaker 1: victims as eleven year old Addie Smith and her mother,
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  Speaker 1: Tanya mcgeean, of Utah. They were staying at the Rio
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  Speaker 1: Hotel and Casino near the Las Vegas trip. The team
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  Speaker 1: reported them missing after Addie failed to arrive at the competition,
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  Speaker 1: Officers were sent for a welfare check Sunday morning. Las
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  Speaker 1: Vegas Metro Police Lieutenant Robert Price describes what happened next.
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  Speaker 2: Officers arrived, met up with security, went up to the
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  Speaker 2: room and attempted to contact a mother and daughter in
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  Speaker 2: their room. They knocked several times, and they called into
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  Speaker 2: the room without any answer.
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  Speaker 1: Security later entered the room that afternoon and found them
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  Speaker 1: both dead. Police believe it was murder suicide. Investigators said
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  Speaker 1: a note was left, but did not release its contents.
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  Speaker 1: The trip had begun normally. Addie tended practice and appeared
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  Speaker 1: fine the day before the competition. Teammates grew worried when
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  Speaker 1: she disappeared. A team parent spoke to KTVX.
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  Speaker 3: They had a very early call time to get to
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  Speaker 3: the event and she was nowhere to be found. So
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  Speaker 3: called called sent messages and nobody was able to get
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  Speaker 3: ahold of her.
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  Speaker 1: Addie was a cheerleader known throughout the gym community. Her
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  Speaker 1: former Utah Fusion All Stars coach Emily Morgan remembers her,
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  Speaker 1: any kid that.
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  Speaker 4: I get to work with, it is an honor for
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  Speaker 4: me and for Addie especially.
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  Speaker 3: It was a privilege.
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  Speaker 2: To be a part of her life and to be
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  Speaker 2: able to love her.
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  Speaker 1: Coaches say Addie motivated teammates and lifted the mood during practices.
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  Speaker 1: The Salem Police Department later confirmed Addie was the niece
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  Speaker 1: of a police sergeant and offered support to the family.
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  Speaker 1: Court record show mcgeean and ADDIE's father went through a
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  Speaker 1: custody battle lasting nearly nine years after their divorce. In
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  Speaker 1: twenty fifteen, the parents were given strict rules for custody
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  Speaker 1: exchanges and finalized custody agreements in twenty twenty four. A
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  Speaker 1: GoFundMe has been created to help the father's family with
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  Speaker 1: funeral costs. The fundraiser set of forty five thousand dollars
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  Speaker 1: Gold and raised twenty five thousand, fifty two dollars from
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  Speaker 1: three hundred and fifty two donations so far, including a
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  Speaker 1: top two thousand dollars contribution. Police continued to investigate and
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  Speaker 1: have not released a motive. More crime and Justice news
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  Speaker 1: after this, A young woman is murdered and dismembered in
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  Speaker 1: North Dakota, but searchers have yet to find her remains.
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  Speaker 1: In Fargo, investigators identified twenty five year old is Adora
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  Speaker 1: Wangle of West Fargo as the victim and her boyfriend,
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  Speaker 1: twenty one year old Joshua Alexander Hit as the suspect.
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  Speaker 1: He was arrested a week ago and charged with murder,
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  Speaker 1: tampering with physical evidence, and providing false information to law enforcement.
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  Speaker 1: A judge said bail at five million dollars cash and
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  Speaker 1: scheduled a preliminary hearing for March eleventh.
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  Speaker 5: This is a.
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  Speaker 1: Crime that is hired to imagine someone could commit, but
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  Speaker 1: we believe this is exactly what's happened. That's police Chief
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  Speaker 1: Dave Zubolski. He says officers are focusing on a black
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  Speaker 1: twenty seven gallon toad believed connected to the disposal of
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  Speaker 1: the remains. Authorities asked residents in Fargo, Moorhead, West Fargo,
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  Speaker 1: and parts of otter Tail County, Minnesota to check rural
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  Speaker 1: properties and roadsides. The investigation began January seventh, when Wangle
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  Speaker 1: was reported missing after last being seen around New Year's
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  Speaker 1: Eve and later at a Fargo walmart. January third, officers
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  Speaker 1: searched the landfill for ten days and executed multiple warrants
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  Speaker 1: across North Dakota and Minnesota. Court documents describe extensive forensic evidence.
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  Speaker 1: Police found a plastic sheet with blood matching Wengle's DNA
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  Speaker 1: in a dumpster outside Heights apartment. A towel contained long
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  Speaker 1: light colored hair. A saw blade recovered nearby contained what
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  Speaker 1: a forensic pathologist called quote an ad mixed fragmented array
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  Speaker 1: of human bone, skeletal muscle, and adipose tissue with her
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  Speaker 1: DNA profile. Investigators also recovered gloves, duct tape, plastic sheeting,
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  Speaker 1: and garbage bags inside the apartment. Records show Height bought
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  Speaker 1: a reciprocating saw, garbage bags, and plastic sheeting January fourth.
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  Speaker 1: Digital Forensics showed searches including home depot, saws, all junk removal,
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  Speaker 1: near me dumpster, and how to register for illegal alias
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  Speaker 1: phone data showed activity from Wanngle's phone after her disappearance,
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  Speaker 1: including unusual photos sent to family members. Prosecutors say Height
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  Speaker 1: gave statements later determined not credible and allegedly used Wengle's
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  Speaker 1: phone to send messages appearing to come from her, creating
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  Speaker 1: the impression that she was still alive. They also cited
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  Speaker 1: evidence tampering and flight risk concerns. Meantime, community members have
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  Speaker 1: organized searches along the Rai River and both states.
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  Speaker 4: The hard part with that is, of course we don't
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  Speaker 4: know where she is. If it is the fm areo
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  Speaker 4: you know here we are setting this up, but it's
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  Speaker 4: really important that it extends into the Minnesota site as well.
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  Speaker 1: That's search organizer Malia Jimenez on kvly. A GoFundMe has
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  Speaker 1: been created by family members to help cover rent bills
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  Speaker 1: and travel while the search for Isidora goes on. The
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  Speaker 1: fundraiser has set a sixteen thousand dollars goal and raised
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  Speaker 1: fourteen two hundred three dollars from two hundred and forty
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  Speaker 1: one donations, including a top five hundred dollars contribution. After
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  Speaker 1: the arrest and update read quote, the focus now shifts
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  Speaker 1: to recovering her body and making funeral arrangements. Please help
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  Speaker 1: us bring Izzy Holmes so we can lay her to
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  Speaker 1: rest with the dignity she deserves. Police continue asking anyone
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  Speaker 1: with information about the tote or wangles whereabouts to call
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  Speaker 1: Fargo Police at seven oh one four five one seventy
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  Speaker 1: six sixty. A woman searching for her o missing dog
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  Speaker 1: learns the pet was beheaded after a viral Instagram post
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  Speaker 1: sparking outrage and a SWAT standoff in northwest Atlanta. Police
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  Speaker 1: say officers were called to a home on Illinois Avenue
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  Speaker 1: near Joseph E. Boone Boulevard after someone reported a dog's
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  Speaker 1: severed head on a porch. Investigators found a machete nearby
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  Speaker 1: and tried to contact the man inside. He barricaded himself
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  Speaker 1: inside for hours before SWAT officers forced their way in,
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  Speaker 1: forced him out, and arrested him. Jalen Wade now faces
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  Speaker 1: aggravated animal cruelty, obstruction, and firearm related felony charges. The
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  Speaker 1: case quickly turned personal for Precious Cody, who recognized the
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  Speaker 1: dog as her missing pet, Bambi, gone sit September. She
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  Speaker 1: tells w Xia she learned the truth through animal services.
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  Speaker 1: She was like, I'm sorry to tell you, but a
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  Speaker 1: man had decapitating the dog and they found her on
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  Speaker 1: the porch where he got off. Cody says animal control
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  Speaker 1: was able to come because Bambi was microchipped. It said Tod,
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  Speaker 1: because it's like my dog was that abusis she was
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  Speaker 1: that visual at all.
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  Speaker 4: Like if he couldn't take care of her, she could
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  Speaker 4: have just too.
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  Speaker 1: Took her to the animal control. Investigators say the suspect
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  Speaker 1: did not know Cody. Neighbors first alerted authorities after images
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  Speaker 1: of the dog appeared on Instagram, leading police to the
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  Speaker 1: home and the hours long standoff. No officers were injured.
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  Speaker 1: Authorities have not released a motive as the investigation continues.
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  Speaker 1: One additional claim surfaced in earlier reporting. The homes landlord,
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  Speaker 1: will Owens, said after the standoff he found unusual writings
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  Speaker 1: on the walls and believed the suspect had been practicing
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  Speaker 1: voodoo in the house. Here he is at an impromptu
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  Speaker 1: news conference.
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  Speaker 5: Jenen Wade. He's a tenant of mine. I've been rent
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  Speaker 5: to him for about three years and this has never happened.
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  Speaker 5: He's always been a respectful guy, so this is kind
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  Speaker 5: of surprising to me. Spoke to him on and off
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  Speaker 5: about ten times, and he kept telling me he was
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  Speaker 5: in a different place, but low and behold, he was
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  Speaker 5: inside the house, inside of a box hiding.
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  Speaker 1: Cody has since launched a GoFundMe described as Seeking Justice
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  Speaker 1: for Bambi. The fundraiser lists a one six hundred dollars
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  Speaker 1: goal and so far has raised sixty dollars from two
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  Speaker 1: donors to help cover legal and veterinary record costs. For
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: the latest crime and justice news, follow crime alerts hourly
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: update on your favorite podcast app with this crime alert.
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  Speaker 1: I'm Drew Nelson.